The Bible asks the question, "How can a young man cleanse his way? Let's see the measures it recommends.
Welcome, my friend, to our Bible study program In Search of the Lord's Way. We believe the Lord's way is the best way for living all the days of a person’s life here on this earth, and it's the only sure way we have for preparing for the world to come. And, we really believe that that way is revealed to us only in the Bible. So, we're glad you've chosen to be with us today, instead of one of the many others from which you have to choose. And we're closed captioned for those who need it, too. So, remember too that we're on this station because of the love and generosity of members of churches of Christ in this area. They're your neighbors, your merchants, your school teachers --or maybe you are theirs. Anyway, they'd really like you to attend their Bible studies and worship. And we'd like that, too. W-e-l-l, we pray you'll be blessed by our study here today.
One of the hymns we sometimes sing in churches of Christ is titled How Shall The Young Secure Their Hearts?. It's one of the oldest songs in our book. It was written by Isaac Watts in 1719. And it says, "How shall the young secure their hearts, /And guard their lives from sin? /Thy word the choicest rules imparts /To keep the conscience clean. /'Tis, like the sun, a heavenly light /That guides us all the day; /And, through the dangers of the night, /A lamp to lead our way. /Thy word is everlasting truth; /How pure is every page! /That holy book shall guide our youth, /And well support our age."
How Shall The Young Secure Their Hearts? is the title of our program today. If you think you'd like a free printed copy or an audio cassette tape of it, please jot down our address and our toll-free telephone number now. The address is In Search of the Lord's Way, P.O. Box 371, Edmond, OK 73083. Or you can e-mail us at Searchtv@aol.com. The telephone number is 1-800-321-8633. And of course you have access to the program again, 24 hours a day 7 days a week in printed form, --or audio or video streamed on our website at Searchtv.org. Well, I'll be back in a moment to read a part of the 119th Psalm, which is the basis of the song I just read. Right now Ken Helterbrand will lead us in a hymn.
We’re reading today from the 119th Psalm. We’ll begin at verse 9 and read through verse 16. “How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to Your word. With my whole heart I have sought You; Oh, let me not wander from Your commandments! Your word have I hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You. Blessed are You, O Lord! Teach me Your statutes. With my lips I have declared all the judgments of Your mouth. I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, as much as in all riches. I will meditate on Your precepts, and contemplate Your ways. I will delight myself in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word.” Now with the reading of God’s word, let’s go to Him in prayer. Holy Father we’re thankful to you that you speak to us through your word and then we have the opportunity to speak to You through the avenue of prayer. And we pray that You would hear us now and bless us with Your presence and all Your blessings as we go through this study of how our children may be brought up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord to be servants of Yours and to turn away from sin as the temptations come. We pray, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
You've heard it said, haven't you, that "Our greatest natural resource is our children?" The Bible says, "Lo, children are a heritage from the Lord: and the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them. They are not ashamed, but shall speak with their enemies in the gate" That’s Psalm 127 verses 3-5. In his Proverbs, chapter 17 verse 6, Solomon even wrote about grandchildren. He said, "Children's children are the crown of old men, and the glory of children is their father. "Children's children are the crown of old men." Well, if you don't think so, you ask nearly any grand dad and he'll tell you. And you probably know a few grandmothers who'd accommodate you with a speech about her grandchildren, too. I'm reminded of the woman who boarded an airplane, found her seat, and buckled her seat-belt. Then, she turned to the lady immediately in the seat beside her and asked her, "Do you have any grandchildren?" With a friendly smile, the lady said, "No." "W-el-l," said the first lady, "Good! Let me show you pictures of mine!" Certainly it's so: Children and grandchildren are among our very choicest blessings, aren’t they? We want the very best for them! Survivors of the great depression were often heard to say, "I want a better life for my children; I don't want them to have to work like I did." And so, they sacrificed their own wants and even their needs, and many of them literally worked themselves to death to give their children everything they wanted. That was a mistake in most cases, but it was sincere and it grew out of a deep love for the children.
One of the greatest concerns of a Christian parent is, has always been and is now, how to instill in the hearts of their children a meaningful faith, how to bring their children up in the nurture and teachings of the Lord so they'll be prepared for whatever life may deal out to them. The Lord teaches such parental responsibility in Ephesians chapter 6 verse 4. And that isn't as easy in our present secular society as it was when life was far less complicated.
It's never been easy to survive adolescence without some permanent scars and injuries. Some have done that, others have not. All of us older folks can testify to that. I became a Christian at a very early age. And I encourage all young people to this day to do likewise. I think it’s the best life at any age. I've never regretted living all of my responsible life as a Christian. I began preaching while I was yet in high school --preached somewhere every Sunday my last year there, so it isn't as though I know nothing about what young people face.
But how can the young secure their hearts and guard their lives from sin in our society in it’s condition that it’s in today with broken, single parent, dysfunctional homes, working mothers, latch-key children, domestic violence and child abuse? How can the young secure their hearts and guard their lives from sin in a society of drug and alcohol abuse, gang wars, street fighting, guns in school, drive-by-shootings and the like? How can the young secure their hearts in a secular educational system void of values, that allows no reference to God, forbids the reading of the Bible, frowns on faith, that promotes sexual promiscuity by the promotion of "safe sex." How can the young secure their hearts and guard their lives from sin in an environment that's obsessed with rock and rap music whose message is absolutely obscene and indecent? How can the young secure their hearts and guard their lives from sin, when their books and movies and video tapes and television entertainment of all kinds is saturated with pornography, homosexuality, lesbianism, sexual perversions of every form, violence and outrageous behavior of every conceivable kind? How can the young secure their hearts and guard their lives from sin in an era of shifting and changing moral values, when no one seems to know, or even wants to say, that's right and this is wrong?
Well, it might surprise you that the results of a Gallup Poll published awhile back reveal that of 513 teenagers who were questioned about their faith in God and the practical meaning of faith, 95% of them believe in God; 3% are unsure and only 2% do not believe. Seventy-four percent of the teens questioned (three out of four, mind you) are praying people; more than half of that number pray frequently; 32% occasionally, only 9% (fewer than one out of ten) never pray at all. Well, these are not the youth that you read about in the headlines of your newspaper or in the magazines.
But, how shall these concerned young people secure their hearts and guard their lives from sin? Well, it's a matter of urgent concern, first, because youthful mistakes destroy lives. What may seem like an innocent drink, or sniff, or relationship, or experience, could easily destroy the rest of a young person's life. Oh my! The young people (male and female alike) whose education has been suddenly halted, whose life's plans and ambitions have been permanently interrupted and side-tracked by just a moment of lustful pleasure is beyond the estimate of the best informed person among us. It's no wonder then, that the apostle Paul was inspired of God to write the young man Timothy to "Flee youthful lusts: but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace, with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart" (II Timothy 2:22).
It's a matter of grave concern, too, because those things quickly become habits, and habits form lifestyles. Alcoholism is an old, but is still a good example. No young man or woman ever set out in life to become "the town drunk." No one ever said, "When I grow up, I want to be an alcoholic, or a drug addict." No one ever plans, "My highest ambition is to be divorced seven times." No, no those things happen by taking small steps in the wrong direction very early in life.
Young people, it's so important to know how to secure the heart and guard the life from sin because of the immutable law that says, "Whatever a person sows, he also reaps." We'd believe that if we read it in "The Successful Farmer" magazine or "The Gardener's Guide," but it's in the Bible, too; in Galatians chapter 6 verse 7. And it's true! Not only do we reap in kind what we sow, but we always reap more than we sow. Yes, you always get more than you asked for that’s good or evil. You can't keep it buried or hidden; it comes up and it’s made known. You can count on it, my friend. It does. It always does. Invariably it does. You can ask some televangelists and some politicians, some sports heroes and some popular entertainment figures, and some others you know if that’s true and they’ll tell you yes. Some of them are living evidences of the truthfulness of Proverbs 11:5-6: "The righteousness of the blameless will direct his way aright, but the wicked will fall by his own wickedness. The righteousness of the upright will deliver them: but the unfaithful will be caught by their lust." It just works that way. Young man, young woman, God's' word is always true. Young people: please! "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that will he also reap."
It's also critical that young people know to secure their hearts and guard their lives from sin because their eternal welfare depends on it. In the beginning God pronounced the death penalty on sin, and it's never been revoked. Jesus Christ offers the only hope of pardon. "And as it is appointed to men once to die, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear the second time, apart from sin, for salvation" That’s Hebrews chapter 9 verses 27-28. After having tried it all, Solomon, the wisest mere man who ever lived said, "Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you say, I have no pleasure in them" that’s Ecclesiastes 12:1. Then in the last two verses of that same chapter (and at the end of the book itself), He says, "Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man's all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether it’s good or bad."
Well, there's a lot more I wanted to say here, but I've got to get on to our question: How shall the young secure their hearts, and guard their lives from sin? Both the hymn we're quoting and the psalm that inspired it, answers first: by taking heed to the word of God. Someone has said, "In a day when the dependables are few . . . children need some fixed points." He's right. I once had a compass in my car that was sometimes right and sometimes not right. I don't know why it didn't work, but it was not only useless; it was confusing and even dangerous. In a strange city in a distant state, I could never know when it was right or wrong, so I threw it away. In new or strange areas, we need a compass that we can depend on. We have to know which way is north and the Bible is that compass, my young friend. You can depend on it. It has never been proven wrong in anything it says. (Now it doesn't always say what folks say it says and what they'd like it to say.) But, what it says, it not only says today, it says it tomorrow, too and the next year, and on into the next century, whenever that time comes.
Well, the psalm continues, saying, "Blessed art thou, O Lord: teach me thy statutes. . .I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies, as much as in all riches. I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways. I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word." That's good counsel, sound advice. God's way is best. "In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths" (Proverbs 3:6). Oh yes, He will! So, young people, and others, will be wise to delight in the law, in the statutes, the commandments and teachings of the Lord. Oh! We dislike such words as "law" and "commandments” and “statutes” and all of that. We like to hear about "good feelings." Feelings are fickle, young man; you can't always know it's right because you feel good about it. Subjective faith, hype religion, the hand-clapping, foot-stomping, hallelujah pep rally kind, is unstable and unreliable. Neither can you follow the crowd; they're trying to enter into the heavenly city in the broad way that Jesus said leads to destruction. In His words, "Enter by the narrow gate for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many there are who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it" (Matthew 7:13-14). That's the Lord's way. You won't go wrong in it, friend. "The word of God is living and powerful” (Hebrews 4:12), which means the word of God is not a dead letter, an obsolete message, but it's current and relevant. Let's pray. Thank you Father for the revelation of Your word. For the preservation of it to our day. And for the life that it sheds on our way. Bless us as we study it and as we try to live by it, give us strength to overcome the evil that works along the way. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.
How shall the young secure their hearts, and guard their lives from sin? The Scripture says, "Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honor your father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; that it may be well with you, and you may live long on the earth", that’s Ephesians 6:1-3. Good advice! Good teaching! You noticed, didn't you, that that's conditioned on your parents being "in the Lord" and bringing you up in the right way, as the way you should go. You're hearing it said that you should live your own life, your parents can't live your life for you. Likewise, you're being told to forget the faith of your parents and grandparents and seek your own personal faith. Well, I know you're being told it's none of your parents' business if you have an abortion, or if you're "sexually active" or if you do any number of other things. Young people, let me assure you: In your own circumstances your parents love you more than any school counselor, or judge, or any family planner. They have a lot more interest in your welfare than any other person that you can name. There are three reasons given in that passage we just mentioned from Ephesians why you should honor and obey your parents: (1) It's the right thing to do, (2) it's the first commandment with promise, and (3) that you'll live a long time on the earth if you do so.
If a young person would secure his heart and guard his life from sin, he must heed another of Paul's admonitions to young Timothy not to "be partaker of other men's sins: keep yourself pure" (1Timothy 5:22). And in I Corinthians 15:33, he stated another eternal truth: "Evil companionships corrupt good morals" (I Corinthians 15:33). Don’t make your close friends and companions of that evil group. Most young people, especially those involved in sports, know the need, and put a lot into keeping physically fit. Likewise Christians know the importance of spiritual fitness, and maintaining pure bodies and pure lifestyles begins with purity of heart. Out of it are the issues of life (Proverbs 4:23). Jesus said, "Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God" (Matthew 5:8). The world doesn't teach "purity" or "chastity," but "safety." My young friends, it's very important that you be a Christian. There's no better way to live out your years here than living as a Christian. Yes, that entails sacrifice, even the sacrifice of yourself to follow Christ, but there's no better way. You'll see, if you have the faith and courage to follow Him. Confess Christ in your youth. Obey Him in repentance and baptism now. Then live for Him all the days of your life here that you may live with Him eternally. And God bless every one of you. Much of our most encouraging mail comes from the youth in our radio and TV audiences. I pray we may have touched some youthful heart to guide him --or her --in the Lord's way of life and salvation. Young people let me hear from you today if you've seen or heard this program and it’s been helpful to you.
Our address is In Search of the Lord's Way, P.O. Box 371, Edmond, OK 73083. Most of you, either have a personal computer, or you have access to one. Our e-mail address is Searchtv@aol.com. Or if you'd like to read it or hear it or see it again, visit our website searchtv.org. Or, if you'd just like to talk with me or one of our elders who works with us here, just pick up the phone and call us (toll free) at 1-800-321-8633. Say, we're glad you were with us today. I hope you'll do it again next week. God bless you. We love you. |